ipl-logo

Emily Dickinson's Poems

900 Words4 Pages

Perhaps the most mysterious aspect of Emily Dickinson is the message which her poems convey. Dickinson is an artist with words: she has the capability to display her philosophy using metaphors and allusions throughout her poems. Despite never marrying, Dickinson held strong views about marriage. She saw marriage as a barrier, that marriage often ended parts of womanhood for the bride. Never the less, it is best to analyze Dickinson’s poem about marriage and love through a feminist perspective to best understand her philosophy about marriage.

In the poem “I Gave Myself To Him,” Dickinson begins with:

I gave myself to him,
And took himself for pay.
The solemn contract of a life
Was ratified this way. (1-4)

The opening stanza gives …show more content…

The poem is written from a young girl's point of view, who is transitioning from girlhood to adulthood by marriage. The speaker put the words “wife” (1) and “woman” (3) in quotes, most likely to indicate that she has little clue about their actual meaning. The speaker, however, did not put the word Czar in quotes, but she is comparing being Czar to being a woman. A Czar is defined as a person appointed to govern a certain subject, the speaker could be making a metaphor about being a woman and a wife in a marriage is like being a Czar: there are aspects of life which she needs to govern alongside with her husband. When the speaker writes “I've finished that – / That other state” (1-2), the other state referred could be girlhood, and thus it can be interpreted that the speaker believes that her girlhood ended simply by marriage. In the next stanza, the speaker makes a metaphor referring marriage to an eclipse, the speaker writes: "How odd the Girl's life looks / Behind this soft Eclipse!" (5-6). The cryptic reference to an eclipse could be deciphered as Emily …show more content…

The speaker also refers herself to be “Empress of Calvary” (6), Calvary in this context is a location -as evident by the capitalization of the word- the location which Jesus Christ was crucified. By referring to herself as "Empress of Calvary" (6), the speaker sees the religious aspect of marriage, but instead of the good aspect of religion, she feels as if her marriage is holy, but she is suffering as well. Later in the poem, the speaker

Show More
Related

Analysis Of Carolyn Kizer's Poem 'Bitch'

587 Words | 3 Pages

She reminds her feelings of the “casual cruelties, the ultimate dismissal” or when he became, “bored with her devotion, ordered her to the kitchen, /Until he was ready to play.” She notices her forgetfulness towards his neglect during their relationship and simply reminds the “bitch” of her devotion was wasted on “small careless kindness”. While keeping the “bitch” in check, the speaker maintains an external equilibrium, fighting against anger and forgiveness, as she continues her conversation with her ex-lover. In the last lines of the poem she instructs the “bitch” that she wasn’t the right type of woman for the man, describing herself as “too demonstrative, too clumsy, /Not

Read More

Comparing Love In The Highwayman And Annabel Lee

862 Words | 4 Pages

“With a love that the wingéd seraphs in Heaven/ coveted her and me.../chilling/ My beautiful/ Annabel Lee ” (11,15-16). The author’s poetic language is able to enhance the message of the theme as well as portray the compulsiveness of the speaker towards his lover that is unquestionably depicted within the stanza the speaker begins to contently delineate his lover, but then rapidly changes his tone and instead shoots accusations at the angels in heaven for tearing apart him from his beloved. The reader can deduce that the speaker had become blinded by the perfections of Annabel Lee and forced himself to believe she had met a sudden demise only because of how strong their love was and still is and not due to superficial reasons. “And so, all the night-tide, I lie down by the side /Of my darling — my darling — my life and my bride,/ In her sepulchre there by the sea — “ (38-40).

Read More

Summary Of Jericho Parms Lost Wax

1061 Words | 5 Pages

When describing her relationship with a man named Joe, she writes “How many times can we cast the same pain from a single mold before it recedes into yet another landmark, like a statue in a night-fallen sculpture court? (pg. 113). This statement can be seen to represent the idea that she longed to find a partner. Though she tried many times the relationships could not become permanent and would fall apart. The anger within her was to blame for her lack of finding the true love she desired to have.

Read More

Comparing Dickinson And Whitman's Poetry

932 Words | 4 Pages

Whitman and Dickinson share the theme of death in their work, while Whitman decides to speak of death in a more realistic point of view, Dickinson speaks of the theme in a more conceptual one. In Whitman’s poems, he likes to have a more empathic view of individuals and their ways of living. For example, in Whitman’s “Song of Myself”, the poet talks about not just of himself, but all human beings, and of how mankind works into the world and the life of it. Even though the poem mostly talks about life and the happiness of it, Whitman describes also that life itself has its ending, and that is the theme of death. For Dickinson, she is the complete opposite of happiness.

Read More

Analysis Poem By Elie Wiesel

795 Words | 4 Pages

The poem begins as a cry to God which directly resembles the Jews cry for help during their suffering. The line “ Where is God now? Shows the unimaginable suffering they are going through, since they are very religious, they would only question God’s intent if they are truly on the verge of biblical hell. The quote “The idea of

Read More

Carelessness In The Great Gatsby Essay

860 Words | 4 Pages

The author uses imagery, symbolism, and tone to show this world. The imagery is, "She laughed his joy she cried his grief." (Cummings ln 14). The women in this poem is effected by her husbands feelings, showing her love for him. "One day anyone died I guess (and no one stooped to kiss his face) busy folk buried them side by side little by little and was by was."

Read More

Suicide Note Analysis

502 Words | 3 Pages

You see the speakers disappoint when she states, “dear mother and father/ I apologize/ I’ve worked very hard, /not good enough/ harder, perhaps to please you/ if only I were a son,” (4-10). This uncover how she is feeling how whatever she does is not good enough for her parents because she is not what they wanted, a son. As the poem continues the poem displays the way the speaker copes with it, when she states “I make this ledge my altar/to offer penance…on my broken body/cover me like whisper of sorries /sorries” (42-43, 52-54).

Read More

The Seafarer And The Wife's Lament

986 Words | 4 Pages

In the lyric “The Wife’s Lament,” a woman’s husband was sent a great distance to war, leaving her all alone for an enduring period of time. She began to feel as if he would never return home to her. She lived her days in exile, having nobody to support her, protect her, or care for her. She spent her says fearing her husband would never return home to her again.

Read More

Lips Have Kissed

1196 Words | 5 Pages

It would be a poem about a person who had terrible past relationships. When you add these words, it goes beyond a past relationship. It is more about the effect of the past relationships and how they left the author feeling useless and sad. That is what the speaker wants to convey and that is why she used those

Read More

Chaos In A Midsummer Night's Dream

233 Words | 1 Pages

This poem teaches you that there will be chaos and order in your life, but it will eventually turn out the way you need it to in order to be happy. Hermia is supposed to get married which is demanded by her father. Her father demands her to get married to Demetrius, let along she's in love with Lysander. Her father commands

Read More

Sex Without Love Analysis

1274 Words | 6 Pages

I view this poem as symbolism for a cycle of thought. Sex without love is viewed in a very positive and negative light throughout, leaving its audience to create their own conclusion to best suit their narratives in life. While it isn’t directly mentioning any people by name, it allows the audience to envision the scenes described to them

Read More

Similarities Between To Coy His Mistress And My Last Duchess

483 Words | 2 Pages

The speakers in the two poems; “To Coy His Mistress” and “My Last Duchess”, were flawed due to the ignorance of their view of women; given that all they believe is that women are on earth to please every man’s need, which is mainly sex. The similarities, and differences, between the two speakers of the two poems, show the real intentions of the speakers have towards the women in the two poems. The speakers in the poem had one belief about women, they are only meant to make men happy and feel good. The imagery used in “To Coy His Mistress” helps create a better mental picture of what the speaker wanted from the woman.

Read More

Emily Dickinson Poetry Analysis Essay

625 Words | 3 Pages

The poem that stood out the most while reading this assortment of Emily Dickinson poems, was her poem numbered 656/520. This poem used imagery in numerous ways throughout in order to show the audience the important themes and the overall meaning of this work of literature. The poem’s main theme was about a walk on the beach that the poet encountered in the early morning. Although the poem is about a beach it can also give the audience contextual clues into other aspects of life.

Read More

When You Are Old Tone

553 Words | 3 Pages

The first stanza is the speaker telling the woman that when she "[is] old and grey and full of sleep,"(1) just read "this book" of her past. The second stanza moves on to talk about her past relationships. Halfway through the stanza, though, he indicates "one man" who loved her better than the rest. This is an indication of his loving

Read More

Similarities Between Emily Dickinson And Sylvia Plath

1072 Words | 5 Pages

In order to show the manner in which Dickinson’s and Plath's poems portray gender relations and, more specifically, how they granted women a strong voice, I will analyze several poems and a novel. Historical background of that time will allow us an insight of the important processes in which many women were engaged. These processes refer to the First and Second Wave of Feminism. Although Dickinson and Plath were not active members of these movements, they are considered to be one of the cornerstones of modern and more equal world. 2.

Read More

More about Emily Dickinson's Poems

Related Topics

Open Document